Pillar Product Design / Posts tagged "industrial design"
February 9, 2022 In blog

Innovative Products at the Seattle Boat Show

This weekend Bob visited Anchor Drink System’s booth at the 2022 Seattle Boat Show. Held at the Lumen Field Event Center, this year’s 75th Anniversary Boat Show featured countless new boats, many other innovative products in the marine industry, and had a great display of vintage boats and water skis. It was great to see Anchor’s line of products doing so well and we look forward to seeing what opportunities come from such a great networking event!  

Inventor brings salt and pepper product to market
December 14, 2021 In blog

Bringing a Product to Market – Pepper King

We interviewed Mike, a local business owner in the Seattle area, about his new product endeavor and his experience bringing a product to market. Mike is the owner of Grain of Salt LLC and the brains behind the Pepper King, the last salt and pepper grinder you’ll ever need to buy.   Pillar: Tell us a little bit about your product. A: Pepper King is the world’s greatest electric salt & pepper grinder. It is powerful, robust, simple, and reliable.   Pillar: How did you come up with your product idea? A: I love electric grinders, yet they all suck. I’ve purchased several and they break

Industrial designer holds production sample of the Homax Tex Pro texture system
December 8, 2021 In blog

Innovative Product Engineering – Homax Tex Pro

We are very excited to announce the launch of the Homax Tex Pro Texture System, an innovative wall texture sprayer that utilizes pre-mixed mud cartridges and an air compressor to tackle interior wall texture jobs. This new system is up to 70% faster and 60% lighter than traditional hopper guns and drastically simplifies set up and clean up for the user. This has been a long, complex product engineering challenge that has been tough and exciting and we can’t wait to see how people react to this innovative product idea. We started working with Homax to develop the Tex Pro texture

Sustainability information molded into a new product
October 26, 2021 In blog

Three Common Misconceptions about Sustainability

As the world pushes to be more environmentally friendly, our clients often ask about sustainability, recyclability, and recycled materials during the product development process. Here are three common misconceptions about recycling and a couple ways you can reduce the environmental impact of your product and its packaging.   Plastic Can Be Recycled as Many Times as Possible Plastic can only be recycled about 2-3 times before it starts to degrade and lose its properties. While some recycling is better than none, materials like glass and aluminum can be infinitely recycled and can offer a better End-of-Life for your product.   Everyone Can Recycle The Same

Mackie CR-X Series studio monitors feature industrial design with metal faceplate
October 7, 2021 In blog

Collaborative Industrial Design – Mackie CR-X Series

The CR-X Series studio monitors are one of many products that Pillar has collaboratively designed with Mackie. Hear from Craig, a Mackie Product Manager, as he talks about the collaborative industrial design and product development process.   Pillar: Tell us a little bit about you and your product. Craig: I’ve been at Mackie as a Product Manager for nearly 3 years, though have been in Product Management for 13 years total.  The project we’re discussing is the CR-X series of studio monitors. CR-X monitors target content creators primarily, producers and audio engineers, but the line also appeals to folks like gamers and/or people working or

Industrial designer sketches new product idea
September 29, 2021 In blog

Five Things to Consider if You Have a Product Idea

You wake up in the middle of the night with an ingenious new product idea, but how will you determine if it is feasible or worth developing? To help, we’ve broken down five of the main factors to consider if you are thinking about pursuing your idea.    Innovation – Your product needs to be innovative to stand out and will most likely be more successful if it solves a problem for its users. A thorough Google search should be able to tell you if your product idea already exists or if the market you are trying to enter is heavily saturated

Inventor reaches for bottle secured using Anchor Drink System's Magnetic Coaster
September 14, 2021 In blog

Bringing a Product to Market – Anchor

For our next client spotlight, Pillar Design spoke with Andrew, the inventor of Anchor Drink Systems, about his experience bringing a product to market. Located on Bainbridge Island off of Seattle, Andrew is a dentist by trade who decided to take the plunge into product development. Check out the Anchor website to preorder your magnetic drink system or browse our Anchor blog post to learn more!   Pillar: Tell us a little bit about you and your product. Andrew: I’m a regular guy that had an idea. Pillar helped me design and build a magnetic coaster which can hold a custom koozie or

Ignik FireCan safely burns propane during a burn ban
August 31, 2021 In blog

The FireCan – Ignik’s New Product Design

This month at Outdoor Retailer, Ignik previewed the FireCan, a portable, propane powered fire pit that allows people to safely enjoy the warmth of a fire during a burn ban. With forest fires on the rise, Seattle based Ignik is striving to provide alternative options for outdoor enthusiasts that are safer for the environment and also more sustainable. Their new product design is a step in the right direction, adding to their line of refillable propane tanks that are already making strides in reducing waste. Propane powered pits are considered safer due to their controllability, elevated constructions that lift the

Glass Expanse Doors Designed by Pillar Design in collaboration with a design consultancy
August 18, 2021 In blog

Working with a Design Consultancy – Glass Expanse

For our next client spotlight, we met with Adam, the founder of Glass Expanse, to talk about his source of inspiration, experience working with a design consultancy, and biggest product development challenge as he brought his sliding door and window system to market. Pillar: Tell us a little bit about you and your product. Adam: We manufacture slide and stack patio doors for the residential and commercial construction industry. Our product is designed to focus on usability and aesthetics first, providing an easy way to completely open spaces. Pillar: How did you come up with your product idea? Adam: I lived in Australia for

Barbell Rescue Product Design and Development
August 3, 2021 In blog

Innovative Product Idea – Barbell Rescue

We are excited to announce the launch of Barbell Rescue, a cylindrical, barbell cleaning brush that effortlessly scrubs chalk off of barbells and other weight lifting equipment. This innovative product idea was brought to Pillar by Kim, a veteran and operating room nurse from Alaska. After serving in the military and becoming a Cross Fit athlete, Kim came up with a better solution for the cumbersome task of cleaning a round rod with a flat brush. The new design, with a spring loaded clamp and contoured shape, fits onto multiple sizes of barbells, hangs onto the bar if let

Product design firm team members discuss a new product design in Seattle
July 20, 2021 In blog

What to Bring to a Product Design Firm Meeting

Starting a product design journey can be daunting and often single inventors and/or entrepreneurs don’t know where to start.  When first meeting with a product design firm, these are a few things you should have ready to go to help maximize your time and help convey your product idea clearly. Signed NDA An NDA (Non-Disclosure Agreement) will protect your idea and allow you to freely talk through the details of your product. Make sure to get this signed before you arrive at your consultation so you don’t have to use your time at the meeting to print and sign the papers. Design Brief A

Pillar design visits client Glass Expanse production facility in Texas
June 24, 2021 In blog

On-Site Product Development with Glass Expanse

This month, Pillar visited Glass Expanse, a long term client who is located between Austin and Dallas in Temple, Texas. Glass Expanse is a high end, sliding door and window maker that produces products with the least obstructed view on the market. We have been working with Glass Expanse for six years now and it has been an absolutely amazing journey to see this small company grow to the height that it is at today. When they first brought the Pillar team on as a product development specialist, Glass Expanse was a very small group of innovative and knowledgeable individuals. To

Back View of XOOT Professional and Ergonomic Drawing Stand Product Prototype
March 18, 2021 In blog

XOOT – Professional and Ergonomic Drawing Stand

Entering the final stages of testing, XOOT, a professional drawing stand for large tablets and monitors, is preparing to launch later this year. The XOOT system provides effortless monitor adjustment to seamlessly switch between viewing and drawing positions, providing a more ergonomic experience for tablet users. Pillar has assisted XOOT through the product development process from the industrial design to the engineering and CAD modeling process. We can’t wait for the first units to make their way into the market.

Closeup of MUi Magnetic Leash Product In Use
December 17, 2020 In blog

MUi Leash

The MUi leash is a magnetic dog leash that allows for quick and easy attachment to your dog’s collar. Utilizing a dual-magnet assisted system, the leash perfectly aligns and securely attaches to your furry friends. Pillar is honored to have been a part of this project, starting at the initial design phase and helping take the product all the way to production. Launching in mid-2021, we can’t wait to see this out in our local dog parks soon! Preorder your MUi Leash here: https://muipet.com/

SousVCart Product in Use Designed by Pillar Design in Seattle
December 8, 2020 In blog

Vesta Precision – SousVcart

In collaboration with Vesta Precision, Pillar designed a mobile sous vide station for professional kitchen use. The SousVcart features two bays, holding a water bath and a vacuum sealer, to provide a streamlined system for food preparation that doubles as an extended work station when not in use. It was a pleasure working with Vesta on this innovative system and we hope to see the SousVcart in every commercial kitchen in the near future!   Learn more on Vesta’s website here: https://www.vestaprecision.com/collections/kitchen-tools/products/sous-vide-station-by-vesta-precision-sousvcart

Magnetic Anchor Drink System Product in Use
November 30, 2020 In blog

Anchor Drink System

Coming soon! No matter where your adventures take you, the Anchor Drink System is ready! Anchor’s magnetic coasters stick to just about everything, so you can park your drink without worrying about spills. It’s been a pleasure working with the Anchor team to develop this product and we can’t wait for it to launch! Keep up to date on their Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/anchordrinksystems/